WRENCH TAP HID PROBLEM

Dear Thumb, I bought a 1989 Dodge Aires last June with a 30-day warranty. It has been a good car, except for the air conditioner, which was not working when I test drove it.

The dealer said it would be fixed when I got the car. The mechanic said he "just tapped the pipe with a wrench and a stuck valve opened."

It worked fine for a few days, until I got to Chicago without air: a $400 condenser replacement. By July, it was a $135 hose. Back to Fort Lauderdale in August, a leaking evaporator would cost $600 of my money.

What is going on here? Is this trial-and-error or incompetent mechanics?

- P.L.V., Fort Lauderdale

Dear P.L.V.,

Your problem sounds like a leak in the system, and your dealer hoped you would take the car and go away without his having to spend any money to make it right.

That "tap with a wrench" could have been charging the system so it would blow cold until you got away from the lot.

You have no way of telling how long the system had been down before you bought the car, but chances are the whole system had started to fail, first one component and then another going bad.

Chances are the problem could have been detected if the system had been checked thoroughly for leaks in the first place, rather than just throwing solutions at it.

Is your car making strange noises? Leaving telltale spots on the driveway? Tell The Greasy Thumb about it. Auto experts will talk about the problem and offer possible solutions. Write The Greasy Thumb, Sun-Sentinel; 3333 S. Congress Ave., Delray Beach, Fla. 33445, or call The Greasy Thumb at 356-4554. Because of the volume of questions we receive, we cannot guarantee a personal reply.